Horse-collar shield.



No. 735,747. PATENTED AUG; 11. 1903.

' B. 1-". GEORGE.

HORSE COLLAR SHIELD.

APPLIUATION FILED JUNE 27. 1902.

no MODEL i 28 25 0 v 01' \jldh; I 125 5 62029? 9 9 UNITED ST T SPatented Augiist 11,1903.

PATENT FFICE.

BENJAMIN F. GEORGE, OF POTOMAC, ILLINOIS, ASSIGNOR, BY MESN EASSIGNMENTS,'OF ONE-HALF TO CHARLES F. MARPLE.

HORSE-COLLAR SHIELD.

V SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 735,747, dated August11, 1903.

Application filed June 27, 1902. Serial No. 113,451. No model:

Weight or expense. I

Another object of the invention is to produce a device of this characterwhich is sim-,

ple in construction, cheap to manufacture, light, and durable.

Other objects of the invention will hereinafter appear, and be specifiedin the claims.

In the drawings illustrative of the invention, Figure 1 is a frontelevation of a horsecollar with the invention applied. Fig. 2 is a rearelevation, enlarged, of the device in place upon a portion of ahorse-collar. Fig. 3 is a transverse section of the shield.

various forms of horse-collars, either thekind formed with a joint atthe upper end or the kind which are closed at the upper end, and

may be readily modified to adapt it to either.

form.

For the purpose of illustrationthe device is shown in the drawingsapplied to an ordinaryjointed collar, or one divided at the upper endand the ends coupled bya strap and buckle, as shown.

The collar illustrated is of theusual struc ture with the pad portion 10and the roll portion 11.

The invention consists in two metal plates 12 13, formed to fit thebreast end of the collar or its lowermost point and extend laterally afew-inches each side of the center, as shown. The metal shields 12 13are united at their edges by hinged joints, as shown, re-. spectively,at 1415, eachhinged portion being line through the hinge members, sothat the pintle 17 may be withdrawn, whereby the section 12 may beturned back upon the hingesection 14 as a center to enable the device tobe placed upon the collar and then looked in position by forcing thepintle 17 through the complementary members of the hinge 15, asindicated in Fig. 2.

The shield members 12 13 will be formed to closely engage the collar andwill conform to the surfaces of the portion of the collar which itengages and will extend a sufficient distance to afford ample protectionto the collar from the action of the yoke-straps and other parts whichengage the breast end of the collar. V

The, weak 'point in horse-collars is almost invariably the breast end orthe parts covered by the shield-plates, and by protecting and shieldingthis weak part by strengthening and supporting and providing a metalwearingplate to prevent friction on the collar of the hame-straps thedurability of the collar is greatly increased and its life materially Vprolonged; The shield-plates also receive the The device may be appliedto any of the im pactof-the hame-couplings and prevent them from comingin contact with the leather surface of the collar.

The shield-plates may be made of any suitable material, such asmalleable iron, or they .may be pressed out of sheet metal of anysuitable grade or thickness. Preferably, however, they will be formed ofmalleable iron. They may be plated, japanned, or otherwise finished toconform to the other metal parts of the harness and will not detractfrom the appearance of the harness, but, on the contrary, will ratheradd to the ornamental features than otherwise. The hinge portions Willbe formed with the usual alternating projections and recesses, as shown,and the pintles of the hinges will pass through longitudinally-alinedapertures in these parts, as shown. p

The detachable pintle 17 is an important feature of theinvention,asitpermits the ready attachment or detachment of the parts to enable themto be connected to the collar or removed therefrom when required.

By forming the hinge portion 14 in a curve corresponding to the curve ofthe plates and of the collar embraced by them no obstructions arepresented to injure the neck or breast of the horse.

It will be noted that no part of the device passes into or through thecollar material; but, on the contrary, all the fastening means areentirely outside the collar, and the material of the collar is at notime punctured or unduly compressed by the device.

The shield-plates may be made of any length, but for an ordinary collarthey will generally be about six inches long; but this length may bevaried, if required, and the patent is not, therefore, to be limited toany specific size of the plates.

The construction of the hinge portions may be modified in minorparticulars without departing from the principle of the invention orsacrificing any of its advantages.

The hinge-pintle 16 will not require to be removed from its place, hencemay be permanently secured in the hinge members 14, as by riveting, andthe movable pintle 17 may be secured in any desired manner which willenable it to be easily removed, and this securing means may be of anydesired construction-such as a screw-thread upon the end of the pintleadapted to engage an internal screw-thread within the outermost memberof the hinge portion 14, a nut upon the end of the pintleoutside theplates, a transverse pin through the pintle, or any other securingmeansand I do not, therefore, desire to be restricted to any specificmeans for securing the detachable pintle in place.

Having thus described my invention, what I claim is 1. A horse'collarshield comprising two opposing plates conforming to the collar andembracing it from opposite sides and with their adjacent edges movablyunited at one side and detachably united at the other side,substantially as described.

2. A horse-collar shield comprising two opposing plates conforming tothe collar and engaging it from opposite sides, and with their adjacentedges movably united at one side and with the adjacent edges on theopposite side provided with alternating interengaging projections andrecesses having longitudinally-alined apertures, and a pintle detachablyengaging said apertures, substantially as described.

3. A horse-collar shield com prising two 0pposing plates conforming tothe collar and embracing it from opposite sides, with their adjacentedges provided with alternating interengaging projections and recesseshaving longitudinally-alined 'apertures, a pintle secured in one seriesof said alined apertures, and a pintle detachably engaging the other ofsaid series of alined apertures, substantially as described.

4. A horse'collar shield comprising two 0pposing plates conforming tothe collar and embracing it from opposite sides, with their adjacentedges on one side curving longitudinally to conform to the collar andprovided with alternating interengaging correspondingly-curvedprojections and recesses havinglongitudinally alined apertures, a pintleengaging said apertures, and means for detachably connecting the otherengaging sides of said plates, substantially as described.

5. A horse-collar shield comprising opposing plates conforming to thecollar and embracing it from opposite sides, with their adjacent edgeson one side provided with alternating interengaging projections andrecesses curving to correspond to the collar and plates and with aseries of longitudinally-alined apertures, and a pintle detachablyengaging said apertures, substantially as described.

In testimony that I claim the foregoing as my own I have hereto affixedmy signature in the presence of two witnesses.

h] BENJAMIN X F. GEORGE.

H1211 Witnesses:

JOHN MOCONNELL, J. H. HOBBS.

